


May The Best Turkey Win

by MissMcCarthy



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Just cute thanksgiving fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-28
Updated: 2019-11-28
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:54:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21577888
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissMcCarthy/pseuds/MissMcCarthy
Summary: When you get put in charge of Thanksgiving, you're excited to make a fried turkey. Steve doesn't take it very well, and the two of you end up in a cookoff to see who can make the better turkey!
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5





	May The Best Turkey Win

~~November 1~~

Thanksgiving was coming up quickly, and you’d managed to convince Tony to let you plan the family gathering for everyone. Steve, Bucky, Clint, Bruce, Nat, Tony, Peter, Thor, Loki, Wanda, Vision, Sam, Scott, Hope, everyone was going to be there and you were insanely excited. Thanksgiving had always been one of your favorite days of the year - good company and great food? What more could you want out of life!

You’d forced Tony to give up control of the party to you when he started talking about caterers and party planners. Thanksgiving isn’t about having perfectly cooked meals or a big bash, no. You just want to spend the day with your family, eat too much and watch some movies. Steve and Bucky had been quick to back you, and they were looking forward to a more relaxed celebration with you in charge.

You were seated at the kitchen table, working on the menu. You’d need to pre-make anything you could, so you had to get a move on and make the grocery list too. Tapping the pencil against your cheek you stared down at the list in front of you. It always frustrated Tony that you still kept lists like this on paper, but living around so much tech, it was sometimes nice to have something so old school.

_Deep-Fried Turkey_   
_Salad_   
_Mac-n-Cheese_   
_Mashed Potatoes_   
_Sweet Potatoes_   
_Gravy_   
_Cranberry Sauce_   
_Green Beans_   
_Rolls_   
_Stuffing_   
_Pumpkin Pie_   
_Apple Pie_

You were too caught up in planning to realize Bucky, Steve, and Sam had taken over the kitchen and you only looked up when Bucky grabbed the list from in front of you. You’d tried to grab it back but he’d quickly jumped back and now all three were looking at the list.

“[Y/N]” Steve cocked an eyebrow, “You can’t deep fry a turkey for thanksgiving.”

“Um, excuse me, but yes we can?” you huffed playfully, “Fried Turkey is superior, and that’s what we’re having.”

“It’s Thanksgiving! You can’t have a fried turkey. It’s just wrong!” his voice was determined as he crossed his arms over his chest.

You mimicked his posture, a cocky grin lighting up your face, “It’s not the dark ages anymore, Steve. Fried Turkey or bust!”

“It’s a classic and it’s traditional to cook it in the oven. Thanksgiving is all about tradition, you can’t go messing with that! Not with the turkey, [Y/N]. That’s a line.”

“I’m team Fried Turkey!” Clint announced as he and Nat strolled in fresh from training, they’d overheard the tail end of Steve’s argument and it was clear they were ready to take sides.

“I have to side with Steve here, there’s a reason the oven-roasted turkey is a favorite” Bucky shrugged, grabbing a water bottle out of the fridge.

“I’ve been watching a lot of Food Network, we could spatchcock it?” Sam suggested.

“No!” you and Steve both cut him off quickly.

A slow smirk crept onto your face as you turned back to Steve, “I propose a cook-off. We’ll both make the turkeys we want for Thanksgiving, and everyone can vote on which is better.”

“Oh, it’s on!” Steve smiled, “But what does the winner get?”

You pursed your lips, fingers drumming on your arm as you thought, “I’ve got it. When I win, you’re going Black Friday shopping with me. You can carry my bags and distract people.”

He blanched slightly, you’d been showing him the videos of the pandemonium from the last few years yesterday and the idea of willingly venturing into that pit of crazy was not sitting well with him, “What do I get when I win though?”

“Dealer’s choice. You can pick whatever you want since we both know I’m going to win it doesn’t matter” you grinned.

“Deal, what are the rules?”

You shrugged, thinking for a moment before looking at Sam and Bucky, “You can’t just vote for him because you like him better. You have to vote for the better turkey!”

“But can we vote you just because we like you better?” Nat asked, laughing.

“Well, duh. Just make sure to let me know that’s why, so I remember to thank you properly later” you winked.

“Well that’s fair” Steve huffed, “How about no cheating? We have to cook it ourselves. No help, no buying the turkey. A good old-fashioned cookoff.”

“Of course you’d want it to be old-fashioned” you teased.  
Steve rolled his eyes, but otherwise ignored your teasing, “Is that fair?”

“May the best turkey win,” the two of you shook hands, and you immediately began to plot.

~~ Thanksgiving Morning ~~

You guys had gotten back from a mission yesterday afternoon, and you were exhausted. You’d remembered to apply the spice rub yesterday before you passed out thankfully. Unfortunately, you’d barely had a couple of hours of sleep before you had to get up and start cooking. Pepper, Clint, and Bruce were all in the kitchen helping you. You’d decided to go all out when cooking, and wanted to make sure there was something for everyone, and that meant there was a lot to do. You’d been unable to premake anything like you’d wanted, missions had been keeping everyone running, so there was a lot to do and so little time.

The day was flying by, and you’d barely even noticed when Steve prepped his turkey and placed it in the oven you’d left available for him. Finally, it was time for you to fry your turkey. Martha Stewart’s recipes had never steered you wrong, and you could only hope she wouldn’t this time either. You carefully lowered the turkey into the hot oil, careful to splash any out and sat by to wait anxiously.

When the timer went off and you were sure the turkey was cooked to the perfect temperature, you pulled it out and set it on a rack so the excess oil could drip off. The turkey looked absolutely perfect, a rich golden brown and the smell was pretty amazing too. You carefully picked up the turkey and brought it inside. Steve was the only other person in the kitchen when you got there, everyone else had finished what they needed to do and had (wisely) decided to get out of the way of you two.

It looked like Steve had just pulled his turkey out of the oven, and set it out to rest when you walked in. His turkey was a lighter gold than yours, but it smelled amazing too.

“How’s it going Rogers?” you grinned.

“It’s almost the moment of truth, so I guess we’ll know then” he shrugged, smiling.

“I guess we shall” your nerves were beginning to grow as you waited anxiously. Tony and Clint had been harassing you all month, telling you that if you lost they would make sure you paid dearly, and you really didn’t want to see what they’d come up with if you lost.

You carved your turkey, relieved to find it wasn’t bone dry, and when you snuck a piece you were pleasantly surprised. Having never made a turkey before in your life, you honestly hadn’t had too high of hopes. Apparently, even you couldn’t screw up a Martha Stewart turkey, and now it wasn’t just arrogance that had you smiling, it was actual hope. The food was arranged around the serving table, and the turkeys were placed on opposite ends of the table.

When you announced that dinner was ready, you’d made sure to stand back, and for good reason. Clint, Scott, and Peter were the first to the table and you were glad you’d gotten out of the way because they arrived much like a stampede. The others soon followed, and once everyone else had grabbed their plates you grabbed yours and joined them at the dining table.

During dinner, you pushed the turkey competition out of your mind, enjoying the little moments like this. Who knew how long it would be before all of you were gathered here again, between missions and living in different places with families and friends and outside lives, it was never a sure deal when you’d all be together.

Tony, Bruce, and Vision were all caught up talking about the latest experiments they were working on in the lab. Their eyes lit up as they spoke, new ideas flying back and forth like a ping pong match, and you didn’t understand half of the words they were using.

To your left, Steve, Nat, and Hope were talking about movies again. You and Nat had been helping him catch up on more movies, and he was enjoying it. Lately, though you’d made it your mission to show him some cult classics, and it was always so much fun to see the look on his face. The last movie you’d made him watch was Rocky Horror Picture Movie, and you weren’t sure you’d ever laughed so hard at someone’s face before. He’d banned you from picking movies after that.

Peter, Clint, and Loki were your trouble makers, always, and tonight was no exception. Any hope you’d had that they would mind their manners today quickly went out the window when you saw the green beans discreetly flying towards Tony. You softly cleared your throat and when they turned to you look at guiltily, you merely cocked an eyebrow. Peter shot you an apologetic smile, but Loki and Clint quickly returned to whispering plans. That was never a good sign, but you’d find out what they were up to later when they pulled some insane prank on everyone, like always.

At the opposite end of the table, Bucky and Sam were in another heated debate. To anyone outside the team, the two looked like they hated each other's guts with the constant teasing and trying to one-up each other. It hadn’t taken you long to realize though that that was merely their friendship. Some days you half wondered if Sam had replaced Steve as Bucky’s best friend considering how often the two were together. Tonight it appeared that they were busy arguing over who would be able to take down a Kree faster.

Wanda and Thor were listening to Scott’s latest story about Cassie (she had convinced her parents to let her go on a trip over Thanksgiving, and it was clear he was missing her today). Apparently, Cassie had taken a lesson or two from her parents. Last week she’d gotten in trouble for threatening a kid at school, and everyone had been horrified until they found out she’d been standing up to a bully who had been picking on some of the other kids.

Sitting here in the middle of our family, everything felt right, and you couldn’t imagine being anywhere but a part of this group of mismatched people. Soon enough, dinner was over and after the plates were piled in the sink - Clint, Scott, and Peter would be doing the cleanup tonight since they’d insisted on sending so many green beans flying tonight - you eagerly turned to the others.

“Well?” you asked, bouncing up and down lightly on the balls of your feet.

“Well, what?” Tony asked, smirking. The asshole knew what you wanted to know and wanted to tease you about it a bit first.

“Oh my god, Tony if you guys don’t start telling me which turkey is better I’m going to lose my mind! I need to know if Steve’s coming with me in the morning” you snorted, grinning at the super-soldier.

“Fried!” Clint and Peter cheered, and you grinned widely.

“Sorry [Y/N], I’m sticking with the good old-fashion roasted turkey” Bruce apologized with a shrug.

“Fried is obviously better” Tony smirked.

“I have to agree!” Nat laughed

“I’m sticking with the traditional” Sam explained.

“That’s because Steve’s your best buddy” you teased, playfully frowning.

“No, it’s not!” Sam argued.

“So… you’re saying you don’t like my cooking” your eyebrow raised.

“That’s no- This isn’t fair!” Sam huffed, causing Clint, Bucky, and Steve to burst out laughing at their friend

“I’m going with the classic as well” Loki shrugged.

“I preferred your creation” Thor grinned, clapping you on the shoulder hard enough you stumbled forward half a step.

“I don’t know how this is even a question, anything fried is the better option. Think about it, deep-fried twinkies are even better!” Scott argued.

Vision and Wanda shot you a small grin, “Sorry, we have to go with Steve here.”

The only two left to vote were Bucky and Hope, and your nerves were growing. You figured that Bucky would end up going with Steve, so you needed Hope to side with you if you had any chance of winning or even tying. Steve looked just as nervous as you, and you weren’t sure if he was just excited by the idea of winning or terrified of going Black Friday shopping.

Hope thought for a long moment before speaking, “Sorry [Y/N]. Yours was delicious but I have to go with the good old-fashion oven roasted.”

All eyes turned to Bucky, and he blanched as his thoughts raced. He didn’t quite enjoy being the center of attention, but he was busy debating each one. Everything came down to him, and he needed to make sure he made the right choice.

“Sorry, I have to say the best turkey was the…” Bucky paused, and you were about to throw a leftover roll at him before he continued, “Fried.”

Loud cheers and groans echoed around the room, and you quickly swept Bucky up into a brief hug before high-fiving Tony and Clint. Steve sighed and as he accepted defeat, giving you a congratulatory hug. Before anyone could begin to debate, Friday interrupted to let you all know that a mission was incoming and everyone needed to head to the briefing room.

You smiled softly as you all headed there, the movies would have to wait for another day, but today had been perfect and you wouldn’t trade it for the world.


End file.
